St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1887-12-10

TURKISH REcNeATS0N9.
Hew The Isaessat ssA6sses q sAe s.lsas
AWuso Tho0solvoo.
The traits Of people may often be
jWdged as correctly from their pleasures
and recrestiOns as from their history
and serious conduct. In the freedom
of the idle. plcasure-seeking hours. .
| people will betray whether they are
imaginative or matter-of-f.ct. whether
they are gentle or roagh. whether they
are sober or buoyant Of spirit. Il is
usual To find that a people who dwell
in rugged. inhospitable lands in re-
gions u storm and gloomy skies. prefer
amuscments which arc hardy and act
i've; while those who dwell in softer.
SUMMER climes enjoy themselves in
! milder recrestiOns.
The old French chronicler. Froissart,
observed. when in England. that tho
English ''took their pleasures very
sadly" The English. and especially
the Scotch. dwelling as they do in =
capricious climate. are noted for tho
ruggedness and hardihoOd OF their
sports. The buOyancy and gayety of
the French character. on the other hand.
are strikingly reflected in the lightness
and sp; 'kle which appear in all thcir
faverite pastimea
The recrsations OF Oriental peoples
are more interesting. because less
familiar to us, than those of the Western
peoples. and afford quite as reliable .
key to national character. A recent
sojourncr in Turkey has given = very
entertaining account Of the. ways in
which the subjects Of the Sultan beyuile
their many idle hours. The Turks are
an indolent people. The lansuor Of
their beautiful climate renders them
prone to take the world easily. to have
frequent holidays. and TO enjoy pleas
ures which soothe rather than excite.
The principal public recreations of
the Turks are three. Ono is. to witness
the burlesque acting Of = company of
men. who do not use any stage for their
performances. but issue forth from be-
hind a simple screen. These players go
about from place tn place. erect their
screen in the open sir. and give their
performances before the motley crowd
Of turbancd id.c.s who gather around
them. Another favOrite amusement is
what the writer referred to calls the
Turkish Punch aud Judy" This
show. however. is given BY means of
shadows cast upon white sheet. Tho
effect Of this is very weird and striking.
The third public recreation is tho
gathering in the streets. or on the open
spaces. to listen to the thrilling tales Of
the '.meddahs." or professional story
tellers T.,. mediahs take the placr.
in Turkey. of lecturers in America.
| They relate the most exciting stories.
with many emphatic gestures. cOntOr.
tiOns Of the face and modulations Of tEe
voice. They sit in the middle Of an at
tentive circle. and often rouse their
hearers to . high pitch Of breathless
interest and excitement by thcir dfa-
matte powers Of narration.
witness the burlesque acting. but they
are forbidden to be present at tho
Punch and judy shows, and at the
storytelling Of the meddahs. Tho
women. moreover. are not permitted
to attend the theaters and opera
houses. sa
Like all Oricntals. the Turks arc
very fond Of music and Of dancing.
But their airs. musical instruments and
dances are entirely different from those
of Western Europe. They partake
very much Of the nature Of the race ~
seen in other ways The Turkish
music. TO Western ears. sounds soft,
melodious and mouotOnous. The Turks.
on the other hand. regard European
music rs too loud. boisterous and con.
fused in sound. A choir, or IN orches-
ira. in Turkey. all sing and play the
cir only.
The Turks like ceremony. and all
their recreations are pursued in Sc
date. quiet. ceremonious way. The mus.
clans, dancers. stOry-tellers are ushered
before aud away from their audiences
with flourishes and Obcisances. and arc
rewarded with much sOlemnity OF de-
meanor. There are very few recrea-
tions in Turkey in which men and
women are allowed to take part In
common. When both sexes witness
the same performances. the women al-
ways sit in group behind screen OF
thick Iatticc, 10 that they can witness
. what 10 going forward without seeinS
or being seen by the men. But in this
case. the best point from which TO view
the performance is accorded t0 the
women. 4s7owkh's Conpsnion.
The First Lightning Rod
II we are to believe an Austrian
paper. the first lightning rod was not
constructed BY Franklin. but by
monk Of Ssqftenberg. in Bohemia.
named Prohap Diwisch, who installed
an apparatus the 18th OF June. 1854. in
the garden OF the curate Of Prendit3
(Moravia). Tho apparatus was conn,
posed Of pole surmounted By an iron
rod supporting twelve euved-up
branches, and Terminating in ~ many
metallic boxes. filed with iron orc and
Closed by lockwood cover. traversed
BY twenty-sevea sharp iron points,
A-s T.